Matters of Scale - All Wet

Amount of water embodied in (required to produce) a slice of bread (liters)

40

An apple

70

A hamburger

2,400

Amount embodied in a glass of wine

1

A glass of beer

75

A cup of coffee

140

A glass of milk

200

Amount embodied in a sheet of A4 paper (210 x 297 mm)

10

In a cotton shirt

2,700

In an Indian-made Tata Motors Nano automobile

62,500

In a U.S.-made Chevrolet Malibu

1,934,500

Amount required to produce one kilowatthour of electricity

71

Typical consumption from one 10-minute shower

95

From a year’s worth of daily 10-minute showers

34,675

Daily human water consumption requirement (from food and beverages)

2.7-3.7

Yearly human water consumption requirement

986-1,351

SOURCES: Embodied water in products: www.waterfootprint.org. In electricity: Worldwatch
calculation based on data from U.S. Geological Survey and the Energy Information
Administration. Shower consumption: Worldwatch estimate. Human direct consumption:
U.S. Institute of Medicine.

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